hello, everyone. i'm ashleigh banfield. it's 11:00 on the east coast and 8:00 a.m. on the west coast. and we are at 27. the number of days before the nation is going to slip over the fiscal cliff and that is what people are talking about. unfortunately, in washington they are not talking to each other about it. right now president obama is meeting with the washington business roundtable. that's just minutes after speaker boehner met with rank and file gop lawmakers and former speaker pelosi met with house democrats. they are all in each other's corners speaking amongst each other but all eyes are on the fiscal cliff. let's scoot over to the president. easy merging from that meeting with the washington business

leaders. let's see what he has to say. >> jim, thanks for your leadership. you know, originally my team had prepared some remarks, they always get nervous when i'm out there on my own, never know what i might say. but given the dialogue that we had the last time, i thought it was useful for me to abbreviate my remarks, speak off the cuff at the top and then most of the time just having a conversation. let me begin by saying all of you in this room are not just business leaders, not just ceos of your companies but you're also economic leaders and thought leaders in this country and i recognize that all of you have an enormous investment not only in your own companies but in the well-being of america. there are a lot of patriots in this room and people who care deeply about not only your bottom lines but also the future of this country. you've shown that over the last

four years. we've gone through as difficult of an economic period as we've seen in most of our lifetimes and we've emerged not yet where we need to be but we've certainly made progress. and the reason we've made progress, in part, has been because of the outstanding management and productivity and competitiveness that you've been able to achieve in each and every one of your companies. i've said this in small groups, let me repeat it to this group. i am passionately rooting for oh your success because if the 7:companies in this room are doing bell, then small businesses and medium size businesses up and down the chain are doing well. if the companies in this room are doing well, then folks get jobs, consumers get confidence and we're going to be able to compete around the world. now, the good news is that

despite the extraordinary challenges that we've seen over the last four years, there is progress in some key sectors of our economy. we've seen housing finally begin to bounce back for the first time and that obviously has an enormous ripple effect throughout the economy. consumer confidence is as high as it's been. many of you, over the last two or three years, have experienced record profits or near record profits and have a lot of money where you're prepared to invest in plants and equipment and hire folks. obviously globally the economy is still soft. europe is going to be in the dulldrums for quite some time and i think what all of you recognize and many of you have told me is that everybody is looking to america. because they understand that if

we're able to put forward a long-term agenda for growth and prosperity that's broad-based here in the united states, then confidence will not just increase here in the united states, it will increase globally and we can get the kind of virtuous cycle that we all want to see. what is holding us back right now, ironically, is a lot of stuff that's going on in this town and i know that many of you have come down here to try to see, is there a way that we can break through the log jam and go ahead and get things done. and i'm here to tell you that nobody wants to get this done more than me. i know that you've got a lot of briefings but let me just try to describe where the situation is right now with respect to our fiscal situation, both what the opportunities are but what also

the challenges are. i campaigned over the last year on the idea that we need to make sure that this economy is growing and that we're providing ladders of opportunity -- >> all right. that's unfortunate. we're just getting to the meat of what he had to say. let me just do some quick summary for you. this meeting that he was having with the washington business roundtable -- and i'm sorry i sound so sick. i'm like everybody else with a bug -- this is critical. what the criticism of the president has been up until now is that instead of meeting with republican lawmakers on a regular basis, is he meeting with everyone else and then sending those everyone elses out to market his plan or put pressure on republican lawmakers to pass his version of what he sees as the solution to the fiscal cliff. so there is the cliff and there is the chasm and mr. obama, as

you know, is standing very firm on the $1.6 trillion in tax hikes. he is offering $400 billion in cuts from the so-called entitlements but also wants to spend $50 billion on infrastructure. mr. boehner, on the other hand, is offering half -- half of what the president's number is on those taxes and not in what you'd say increases. more like closing of loopholes. he also wants much deeper cuts in entitlements and beyond. so we're watching both ends of pennsylvania avenue this hour. we've got dan lothian who is standing pat at the white house to figure out just exactly what the movements are every day. dana bash is on capitol hill. dan, let me start with you. we were just hearing from the president and we were cut off by a nasty satellite. let me talk about these business people and what exactly they can bring to the table because it

seems as though he's soliciting them for advice. >> reporter: he is. but at the same time, you brought up a good point, that the president really has been doing a lot of the pressure as opposed to sitting down with lawmakers face-to-face. he's using outside groups to put pressure on lawmakers. so he's had middle class americans here at the white house. he's had small business owners and big-time ceos at the white house and now he's reaching out to the business roundtable. many movers and shakers in the business community to make the case as a white house official that if -- without this fiscal cliff situation being resolved, it doesn't give the certainty that not only businesses need to start making investments, to hiring more people, but also middle class americans can't get that comfort that they need to know that their taxes won't go up at the end of the year. and so that's sort of the message that the president is bringing to these business leaders today. but in addition to that, trying

to put pressure on them to support his approach, which is those upper income americans need to pay more, ashleigh. >> here is another critical movement. i don't know how critical it is but to me is seemed critical. the president in the bloomberg interview, which is the first interview since the election, it seemed that perhaps he was prepped to make an overture on the insistence to raise tacks on the top 2%. did i hear wrong or read it wrong? that this demand is a temporary demand? >> reporter: yes, it does seem like there's a little wriggle room. jay carney was asked about this and didn't want to get nailed down. the answer that you get from jay carney is he doesn't want to negotiate these kinds of things in public. but it does appear that the

president created a little bit of wriggle room. are they negotiating? are there some phone calls or e-mails going back and forth, something that's happening behind the scenes that we're not seeing behind the cameras? and i just heard from a gop aide who tells me that nothing has changed from yesterday. there's still no phone calls, no e-mails, no communication ongoing from behind the scenes even though the white house says that the conversations continue. it's very difficult to see how this ball will get moved down the field if they are not talking. >> okay. and can i just main illustrate more about that comment that you just made? was the quote actually no conversations today, no e-mail tweets or carrier pigeons? >> that's right. i know. it's very interesting. because i think that's the disturbing part of this, that a lot of time there's a lot of posturing that takes place in front of the cameras. we've seen this happen over the last three years. but when that is happening in

front of the cameras, you always hear behind the scenes there's a lot of back and forth and negotiations are ongoing and we're hearing that nothing at this point. so i think that's a little disturbing. the next few hours will be critical. >> dan lothian at the white house. thank you, sir. i want to go to dana bash who is standing by at capitol hill. so the speaker, obviously, has the same problems that i would assume the president has. they each have those in their party who are at the opposite end of the spectrum. some who have dug in and others who would like to get a deal perhaps. is the speaker facing that two-front war and is he figuring out ways to perhaps not face two fronts in his own party? >> reporter: the speaker always faces a two-front war. it's part of the fascinating dynamic and difficult dynamic for any leader but particularly this particular speaker in this particular conference which was elected to be a fiscally conservative and try to reduce

the deficit. however, myself and members of our team were standing outside and talked to dozens of members and it does seem as though internally he didn't get an earful. they are very upset that the counteroffer includes $800 billion in new tack revenue but behind the scenes he's been able to hold the conference together and they are staying unified behind him in going forward with the process and the speaker was asked why that is. here's what he said. >> our members understand the seriousness of the situation that our country faces. trillion dollar deficits for as far as the eye can see. $16 trillion worth of debt already on the books. every man, woman, and child owing the government over $50,000 and that number is increasing every single year. and i think as a result our members understand that we've got to solve the problem and we

will. >> so the bottom line is it really seems obvious, especially after talking to members coming out of that meeting, that they have been able to at least so far turn the rank-and-file and obtained them and said to the conference, the american people re-elected, meaning the president, and re-elected us. that's not a mandate to raise taxes. it's a mandate to work together. >> mandate to work together which means they may not go on their break which is expected. i heard the speaker tell you that he's going to tell you as well. quickly, dana, he's going to stay regardless of whether they go on break, right? >> reporter: right. and the question was the house of representatives is going to finish their work this week in about 45 minutes and it's only wednesday. >> right. >> reporter: they are going to go home. they are not going to be in

session on thursday or friday. i asked the speaker whether that is got optics for the house to leave town while the fiscal cliff is so close in front of us and that is the answer, that he will be in town, ready, willing, and able to talk to the president at any time. so that was really the issue. the house republican leadership, i tell you, they say they simply don't have any legislation to put on the floor. that's why they are play sending their members home. they are hoping to get the message that republicans admit that they have not done a great job on. the democrats are winning the message, why is why hold the middle class americans hostage for the wealthiest americans. >> happy holidays to them. dana bash, thank you. we expect to hear soon from senate democrats as well. they are scheduled to hold a live news conference. you'll hear it right here first. our abundant natural gas is already saving us money, producing cleaner electricity,

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with odor free aspercreme. powerful medicine relieves pain fast, with no odor. so all you notice is relief. aspercreme. that the west coast has been taking it on the chin, absolutely saturated from not just rain but a real deluge. i'm sorry to tell you, it's not going to last long.

by saturday, you're going to get another round of storms. landslides now becoming a serious problem. chad myers now joining me live in atlanta. the reason we're talking land slides as well is because fires past are causing problems present. >> you bet. 1.6 million acres in idaho burned, mostly in the hills. 1.2 million acres burned mostly in washington and oregon. when the trees and brush burn off, there's no roots, the roots die and all of a sudden there's nothing holding the dirt back from becoming mud when we get rain like we've had and mudslides. 2012/13 winter may be known as the mudslide danger. if you have a burn scar above your home, you need to always pay attention when the rain comes in like it has. today is a day for a break. today is maybe to clean some of this stuff up. there was that mudslide, we

showed you the picture, don't need to show you again, but there's more rain on the way. we have about 16 days in the forecast here. one storm slamming into british columbia, and than another one into western washington and oregon. so far southern california is dry. this is not that el nino type of weather pattern yet. but i am very concerned. like you were talking about, the mudslides and landslides in the west. when that mud starts to ooze, there is nothing to stop it because the roots are gone. >> what about the temperatures? people are saying that it's been warm. does that play into this as well? >> it does play into it. because the moisture has been pushed in and then it's dropping down. i want to tell you, if you want to do shopping in the nice weather, you need to do it soon. retailers want some warm. so you shop. and then they want cold so you

buy that for presents as well. >> that's awful. >> and for you, a ski suit. >> yes, that's an industry that has suffered as well with a bad season. we'll look for the silver lining anywhere that we can find it. chad, thank you. appreciate it. i have another weather story i want to bring to your attention. you've heard of a typhoon. what about a supertyphoon? 270 people are dead. houses gone and flattened. look at that. mudslides are a problem there as well. violent flash flooding. and i mean violent. the death toll is not standing where it is is. it's supposed to go up a lot. a lot of people are still missing and there is absolute chaos. cnn reports. >> reporter: typhoon bopha

slammed into the philippines and homes were thrown through the air as one official said like flying machetes. three times the amount of rain that the area would normally receive in the entire month of december in only three hours. many of the deaths are being attributed to flash floods and drowning. a powerful typhoon in december of last year killed more than 1200 people. officials say they learned a painful lesson from that storm and it may have saved lives this time around. >> we're expecting the worse because it's a super typhoon. we're more prepared this time. we're more prepared and we did pre-emptive evacuation and early warning this time unlike last year. >> reporter: the storm had been building over days and

philippines' officials took action, evacuating 60,000 to shelters and those numbers have since grown. families huddled together, not much space though there is food and needed sleep. not all heeded the call to evacuate. this woman's mother died in the storm. >> translator: we didn't think the winds would get that strong. the floods were rushing towards us. we didn't imagine it would turn out that way so we didn't come here to evacuate, she says. >> reporter: over the next few days, relief workers will be searching for survivors. more death and damage likely to emerge. some here are slowly returning to their homes to clear the mud and water and others will have to wait for aid and rebuilding. still, some have survived the supertyphoon. priority mail flat-rate boxes.

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so here's an interesting question. what are you? i know it's a bit weird but you get questions like this all the time. are you black, white, asian or latino? or are you that other category? a lot of people find this a

tricky question. it's not simple and they are forced to deal with it every time they fill out one of these forms. it leaves them questioning, oftentimes, does this even need to be asked and should i even answer it? soledad o'brien has a great explanation. ♪ >> if there was a word to describe me, it would most likely be -- i'm in a band and we do alternative rock kind of. at first when people meet me they don't know what i am. people will ask me, what are you? >> reporter: 17-year-old jones is a singer, talented poet, a high school senior. but that's not what people want to know. >> recently after i had one of

those experiences, i was like, becca deals with the same thing. let's make this a group piece. >> what do you want to do? >> pick a book and pick a poem. >> they do spoken word poetry together. >> it starts off and it's like, girl, you are so pretty. what are you? the quintessential girl because answering human is not enough for them. they can't handle my racial ambiguous figure. >> if they can just pin down the answer for my burnted potato red skin. >> they are being asked to category themselves racially in a country that historically put people into one of two boxes. black or white? >> can you decide if you're black or white? >> i don't think anybody else gets to pick for me. it's what i say about myself

that is the most important. >> so who is black in america? is it determined by the color of your skin, what your family says, or something entirely different? soledad o'brien who is the expert on this is going to examine the questions about skin color and race and it's in this awesome documentary, "who is black in america" at 8:00 p.m. eastern and pacific on december 8th. lashawn's got her christmas list. she's looking for a fijit at toys "r" us. let's see if we can get the same item at walmart for less? okay. fijit friends. fifteen bucks on rollback. wow! that's a savings of over 29 bucks! twenty-nine bucks!!?? and they're powered by friendship. see for yourself if you could save on the brands you want. walmart.

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♪ and the candidate's speech is in pieces all over the district. the writer's desktop and the coordinator's phone are working on a joke with local color. the secure cloud just received a revised intro from the strategist's tablet. and while i make my way into the venue, the candidate will be rehearsing off of his phone. [ candidate ] and thanks to every young face i see out there. [ woman ] his phone is one of his biggest supporters. [ female announcer ] with cisco at the center... working together has never worked so well. you can't have him. >> who's going to read me my bed time stories? >> mommy will. >> you're not going to kiss me good night anymore, will you, dad? >> no, i won't be able to do that but i'll get to visit.

it's going to be okay. really. >> remember cramer versus cramer, 1979? an award winning film starring dustin hoffman and merrill styl. i've got a story that is kind of the same but a lot more complicated. it involves the custody fight of a 5-year-old girl and an international treaty. plus, a supreme court decision that could decide which parent that little girl ends up living with. cnn's correspondence joe johns with the details. >> reporter: chafin is in the middle of the custody battle between two parent at the end of the a rocky marriage. >> my daughter, she's my sparkle. she's everything. she's everything for me. >> i believe i will never see

her again. >> reporter: it's a complicated legal fight dealing with international borders and treaties and important enough that the u.s. supreme court has taken the case. the last time she was in the u.s., her father shot this video of her. but now she lives in scotland where her more lynn is from. a federal judge ruled that she could take her back to scotland despite the father's objection. he says that she shouldn't be with her mother because lynn has a drinking problem. >> personally, i don't think someone with an alcohol issue like that can take care of a child. you know, definitely on their own. >> reporter: as evidence, this is a 2010 police video where lynn was charged with disorderly conduct. lynn says it was an isolated incident after a night out. >> you know, i had too much to drink and i apologized to the court when i was taken to the court. this is not a reflection on me.

i wasn't drunk and in charge of my child. >> it's a classic he said, she said. >> i believe he set me up. >> reporter: lynn says it's a plot to get her deported sdple called the police on me on the 24th of december, christmas eve, and i was removed from the house. i was taken to a particular jail. >> reporter: something jeff denies. >> how could i get her deported? how is that even possible? >> reporter: telling a totally different story. >> i woke up with her standing over me with a knife. >> reporter: so why would the supreme court get involved? there's a pretty called the hcch treaty. >> the whole treaty turns on these two words, habit habit you'll residence. what is the ordinary home of this little girl. >> and what is it in. >> scotland. >> reporter: the federal girl agreed that's where the little girl belongs the question is

whether lynn intended to stay in the u.s. with her family. >> the phrase miscarriage of justice comes to mind. >> reporter: but the main issue is whether jeff can appeal the decision now that she's out of the country. >> you've got to have that next level of review. >> reporter: and it could have broader implications. >> this is a case that has significant long lasting impact for every parent in america. >> reporter: though most likely for military families that live overseas, it all comes down to this. >> the welfare of the child is not good for a child to be like a ping pong ball going backwards and forwards between countries. >> joe johns joins me live outside of the court. and it always assumes that the best interest of the child is number one when you're arguing a case, when you're deciding a case, even when you get to bring a case. where you're standing right now,

that's not what you are deciding at all. this is a very narrow issue for the supreme court. >> reporter: that's for sure. and for the people who are lawyers, the issue is mootness. let's step back a bit. this court has seen a lot of dramatic things happen in this story but they decided to zero in on what may be the most dram mat tech of all. a moment 18 months ago when lynn chafin won her day in district court in alabama and within two hours aris chafin was on a plane out of the country, end of story. and the question really i think a lot of the justices were asking is whether there ought to be a time out, a 48-hour period, something where there's time to appeal, time to get a second look by a different judge. and as you know, ashleigh, there are a lot of judges out there that don't take kindly to the idea of an international treaty sort of undercutting all of the

rights of the appeal because they think the united states has a pretty good system. >> how do you establish this hab habitual residence? how is that the united states is not the habitual residence for that little girl? >> reporter: there's a whole series of analysis and there's different points people can argue different things. the father argues, well, lynn chafin had intended to stay in the united states so you should consider habitual residence the united states. lynn chafin says, no, she didn't intend to live in the united states and aris spent more time in scotland. >> what a case. it's heartbreaking no matter how you look at this. joe, thank you. excellent work. i appreciate that. and also if you want to read up a little more on this case, i encourage to you do so. there's a lot to learn.

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you a very dramatic scene for a moment. a wheelchair moving slowly to the center of the senate floor and in that wheelchair, an 89-year-old war hero, a hero who earned two purple hearts, a bronze star. and that hero appeals for recognition of a treaty. it's a treaty that bans discrimination against people with disabilities. just sounds like a no-brainer, right? the war hero is right there to the right of your screen. you recognize him. it's bob dole. one-time republican presidential candidate. and 30-year senate leader. and in a very emotional moment, democrat and republicans walked over to him to greet him. and then democratic senator john kerry, who also has two purple hearts, who also was nominated to run for president, gave his

most impassioned speech of the year. >> bob dole, why is he not here? he's not here to advocate for the united nations and certainly this man is not here because he doesn't want to defend the sovereignty of the united states of america. he is here because he wants to know that other countries will come to treat the disabled the way we do. he's here because he wants to know that when a disabled american veteran or wounded warriors travel overseas, that they are treated with the same dignity and respect that they receive here at home. that's why an 89-year-old veteran one week removed from the bethesda naval hospital comes back to the senate on an early december day, because it matters. because what we do here in the united states senate matters. not just to us but to people all

across the globe. >> that's pretty powerful stuff. and after all of that, bob dole was wheeled off of the floor with his wife and then the vote came and it was rejected. it was rejected. wolf blitzer is with us now to talk a little bit more about this. on its surface, wolf blitzer, it would seem like political suicide to vote down a treaty that promotes the rights of people with disabilities. but there has to be a good reason as to why someone would vote it down. what is it? >> first of all, you need 67 votes to ratify a treaty. you need a two-thirds majority. they got 61. they didn't get 67. it's they are going to try again next year, including john mccain, but a lot of other republicans by in large conservatives, they hate the united nations, they don't trust the united nations. they don't want international law, in their words, to interfere with domestic laws in

the united states, whether federal law, state, or local laws. and one of the most recent major reasons why they rejected this treaty, these republicans by in large voted again ratifying this treaty was because of the powerful words that rick santorum, the former republican presidential candidate said. as you know, he has a severely disabled child, a little girl. he said, i don't want international lawyers, i don't want the united nations and new york and foreign countries telling me and our local officials what they can or cannot do as far as treatment for little bella, his daughter. and that was a powerful factor in convincing a lot of these republicans to reject this treaty. they didn't see that they needed the international community, in effect, to get involved in what was going on here in the united states. the counterargument, of course, is we want to bring, by ratifying this treaty, to bring the rest of the world up to the

u.s. standards in hoping those with disabilities but that obviously didn't resonate, at least not enough, to get the 67 votes. >> i bet you, though, we end up seeing something like that in campaign ads in a couple of years. wolf blitzer, thank you very much. be sure to watch 4:00 this afternoon, "the situation room." thank you, wolf. >> thank you. many of my patients clean their dentures with toothpaste. i tell them dentures are very different to real teeth. they're about 10 times softer and may have surface pores where bacteria can grow and multiply. polident is specifically designed to clean dentures daily. its unique micro-clean formula

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there are a lot of ways you can choose a vacation destination. you can take a family vote at dinner or close your eyes and throw a dart at a map. you can be really lazy and go to canada. i'm kidding. there are other ways to choose a vacation spot. i am talking to you, lonely planet, this awesome guide book.

the whole group of people at the lonely plat net are giving you the top ten u.s. destinations for 2013. drum roll, please. ready? number one, louisville. number two, fair banks. number three, san juan. number four, philly. number five, american samoa, number 6, eastern sierra, northern maine, twin cities, number 9, nerde valley, number 10, glacier national park. i'm joined by the u.s. editor. where is the statue of liberty, mt. rushmore and the grand canyon. >> you want to know what states -- >> no, you know what i mean. first of all, louisville, kentucky? >> yes. it's quietly become in the last

few years kind of like the newport land, oregon, the new hip place to go to. if you're looking for a place for a big weekend, bourbon rains there. >> we're talking family vacation. >> you can bring your family. there's steamboats on the river and newly converted warehouses with antique shops and great eaters. they have louisville stickers. there's a lot of bars and bourbon that gets flowed there. if you go in early may you can add the kentucky derby. >> so what is up with philly? i think a lot of people thought that was fun, if not funny. >> i love philly. it's not just tri-cornered hats. >> and cheesesteaks. >> and cheesesteaks. art rifts are getting priced out of new york. there's a huge gallery scene. >> these pictures are beautiful.

>> and one of the greatest collection of impressionist art moved from a suburb to central philly last year. this has become one of the things that people have to do when they think about art. philadelphia. >> i was surprised about the whole top ten. were there any on this list as you compiled them that surprised you? you did not expect it to make the first cut? >> i think a lot of people don't realize how great fairbanks is. >> that's right. >> we get to see it in the live news shot on fox every day. >> fairbanks, because of the northern lights. it has more visibility than anywhere in the u.s. 2 40 days a year you can go and it looks like the spirits of different years. it's unreal. it makes a noise, too. everyone should see the northern lights. >> i grew up watching the northern lights on a regular basis. so this picture to me is actually normal although a delight because it is sort of a summer phenomenon from where i'm

from. going to alaska, it's keeping your money in the u.s. economy. >> that's right. >> you know, i was interested in putting in new jersey because new jersey is the 40th anniversary of bruce springsteen and because sandy affected new jersey, too. they are bouncing back, too. and the sixth -- >> maybe you'll get a sighting of chris christie, and he will swear at you. >> that's an added bonus, getting sworn at. >> in jersey, it's a badge of honor. i worked in jersey for a long time. it's great to meet you. beautiful pictures too. for more on this list, check out cnn.com. it's awesome.

it's been a really big day in washington state tomorrow for some people because any adult there is going to be able to smoke marijuana legally. tomorrow. just a little bit, though.

like an ounce, which to some people is not a little bit, but you don't need a reason. you don't need glaucoma or trouble sleeping. no medical reason at all. this might keep you awake. it is still illegal under federal law month matter whether you are in washington, colorado, which is in a month, or anywhere else. the state actually -- washington hasn't even checked yet with the feds to see how they're going to sort of deal with this lawinger heads really of laws. ethan nadelman joins me now. help me navigate this. i think this is a big question for a lot of people. not the least of which the people in that state that would like to light up tomorrow. what does this mean when it comes to federal law versus state law and are the feds changing their tune in terms of when they're going to prosecute and when they just might not? >> i'll tell you, nobody really knows the answer. i think the obama administration, the justice department are trying to figure it out because what happened on election day was in washington and colorado it became the first

two states in the country and actually the first two political jurisdictions anywhere in the world to decide to legally regulate marijuana like alcohol, so the feds have to figure this out. >> a little like alcohol. i can buy as many bottles of beer as i want. i can only have an ounce of marijuana in washington and in colorado, right? >> that's right. it's important to say, by the way, that what's going to happen this week in washington state and next month in colorado is just going to make it legal to possess up to an ounce in the privacy of your home. you can't go out smoking in public, all this sort of thing. the part -- >> you have to stay in your home really? >> yes. washington is going to be private. not puffing down the street. this is going to be fairly subtle. the part of the laws that say that washington and colorado state governments should set up a legal regulatory system like with alcohol, those don't enter into force until july in the case of colorado and december next year in washington, so nobody has to do anything soon. all that's going to change is people can possess up to an ounce without getting arrested. >> while we sort of debate back and forth what the feds are going to do about the guy whose smoking a joint in his house, how about the more macrolevel of

this. let's say washington state tomorrow needs to start setting up the regulatory boards, the commissions, those who oversee collecting taxes because this is supposed to be a tax boon, according to some, for many states. are they now subject to federal law, because essentially they're involved in the drug business. >> you have the gov governors in both states. they're asking the feds what to do, and the feds are saying we're not sure. now, you know, two years ago when there was an initiative in california to try to legalize marijuana that fell just short, the attorney general holder warned the californians, you better not do this because we're going to crack down. this time the attorney general didn't say a word, so a lot of us are optimistic that the feds are going to give this a shot for the state governments to come up with a responsible, regulatory system, and everybody wants smart regulation, right? nobody wants this thing all in the underground and all crazy and this sort of stuff. how do you do this, and can the white house and the justice department leadership say let's chill out on this for a bit, let's let this happen in a

responseible way? >> five seconds left. do you expect to see any big busts across the board or absolutely nothing off the bat? >> i don't think anything big is going to happen. no big bust coming up. >> it's good of you to join us. thank you very much. i don't think this conversation is over. tomorrow we have next month, and then we have the rest of the fall-out. >> you said it. >> when everything else starts to happen. nice to have you. thank you for joining us. it's been nice to have you for this hour. make sure you stay tuned. newsroom international is going to get going with suzanne malveaux right after this break. have a great day. ♪

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